In the Company of Others
by caudipteryxzoui
Summary: "What's the matter, Dolo? Why so sad?" Ben asked the bantha he'd named Dolo. "Do you miss Master Qui-Gon too?" Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan slash. Written for serenityabrin.


The dome of the heavens at night was a milky wash of a million stars and systems. Obi-Wan tilted his head upwards and wondered if, right now, on some other planet far away, other beings were doing the same. He imagined being able to see across the vastness to space, being able to meet their gazes directly, being able to make a connection.

Thus does the Force bind all life in the galaxy together in a harmonious, interwoven tapestry, Obi-Wan told himself silently. I may never know they are there, yet even separated by lightyears of distance, we are all animated by the same shared Force, and we all share a common destiny.

It was a comforting thought at times like this one, when he was feeling alone and uncertain. Oh, he wasn't _truly_ alone—Queen Amidala and her retinue were safe and sound asleep aboard her ship, and Qui-Gon had gone into Mos Espa to do what was needed to get the ship repaired. Nonetheless, a shadow, a premonition of something sinister, flitted on the edges of Obi-Wan's mind, and it kept him awake when he ought to be resting, unable to shake it.

So here he was, taking in the cool, desert air and looking at the stars instead of—

A low-pitched, breathy rumbling interrupted Obi-Wan's thoughts. Startled, he spun around reflexively to face the direction from whence the sound seemed to have originated and saw a pair of giant, hairy, horned quadrupeds approaching over a nearby ridge. They were moving purposefully toward the ship, and one of them, Obi-Wan realized, carried a rider on its back.

"A most pleasant evening. I am glad to see you outdoors," Qui-Gon called out nonchalantly, like riding in on a hairy, horned beast was something he did every day.

"What _are _those things? We can't afford to take in any more strays or pathetic lifeforms on this mission, Master!" Obi-Wan knew he shouldn't be so critical, but he couldn't help it. Qui-Gon's penchant for waifs and strays had complicated this mission enough already! He sniffed—the beasts were rather…odiferous. "Besides, they're much too big to take aboard with us."

"I make no promises or excuses for my proclivities, Obi-Wan, but in this instance you need not worry," Qui-Gon replied. "These two have not gone astray. They are bantha of Tatooine, and it's a fine night for a ride, don't you think?"

"'A fine night for'…? Master, aren't you supposed to be finding someone who can fix our hyperdrive? Surely there are more important things to be—"

"No, not at this very moment. Join me, Obi-Wan. Ride with me," Qui-Gon spoke like he hadn't even heard Obi-Wan's protests, and Obi-Wan knew full well that when Qui-Gon got some strange, impulsive notion into his head like this, there would be no dissuading him.

"Oh, very well." Obi-Wan reached out to the rider-less beast—a "bantha," was that what it was called?—with his Force-senses as he mounted its back, calming and reassuring it of his good intentions, convincing it to accept him as a rider…

…and was surprised to realize that _she_ required no such intervention. The bantha's mind was as placid as the surface of a still pond, and she was no more troubled by his presence on her back than she would have been by an extra grain of sand.

If Qui-Gon registered Obi-Wan's surprise, he did not show it. "Shall we?"

Although the desert looked the same in every direction, Qui-Gon seemed to have some specific destination in mind, and Obi-Wan's bantha seemed content to follow closely beside Qui-Gon's. They rode through empty desert in companionable silence for nearly an hour, Obi-Wan lulled nearly to sleep by the rolling, rocking gait of the bantha beneath him—

"We're here."

Obi-Wan jolted upright. "Here" was…a bantha herd? What in the…?

They were in the midst of descending the gentle slope of a bowl-shaped valley, and scattered throughout the valley, as far as they eye could see, were bantha. There had to be hundreds of them! By the dim light of the stars, they looked like so many dark lumps spaced at regular intervals—why, they could almost be a village, if the bodies of the bantha were little homes—

Some of the bantha "bodies" flickered with firelight. Some of the dark lumps that Obi-Wan had initially taken for bantha were in fact primitive yurts constructed with bantha hides. Ah, so this _was _a village…!

"Some of this planet's native sentients exist in a co-evolved symbiotic relationship with the bantha. Bantha provide them milk, meat, hair for weaving, and hides for yurts. They are also used as mounts. They receive protection and preferential access to food and water resources in return. So bantha like these which live alongside the Sand People have thrived, while their wild ancestors are completely extinct," Qui-Gon said, seemingly out of nowhere, in the tones of a teacher delivering a lecture.

Apart from anything else, Obi-Wan _was_ still Qui-Gon's apprentice. Now that he knew what to look for, he could see small, bipedal figures in heavy clothing moving about the valley. Connection and interdependence, to be always in the company of others: That was the way of all things great and small in the galaxy. "So that explains why they take riders so easily," he said. "They've been domesticated."

"Perhaps. But in Mos Espa I was told that the Sand People live hard lives which are, if anything, shorter on average than a human's. Conversely, some bantha are known to have lived for over three thousand years."

"Three thousand—?!" Obi-Wan gaped at Qui-Gon. Even the venerable Grand Master Yoda would be a youngling by comparison! Obi-Wan tried to imagine the vastness of such a life, the wisdom the years, centuries, and millennia would impart. The strength it would take to face those uncertain years without fear. He had, he realized, acquired a newfound respect for bantha.

"So who domesticated whom, I wonder?" Qui-Gon mused.

Before Obi-Wan could muster a suitable reply, Qui-Gon leapt from his mount, landing lightly on his feet. Obi-Wan hastened to follow. The two bantha, perhaps eager to rejoin the herd, immediately left them behind. Qui-Gon made no move to stop them. Well, okay, that was great, just great—what were they going to do now without their rides?

"Erm, Master, the bantha. How are we going to get back to the ship? Our rides—"

"The night is so beautiful, and this place is so alive. I thought we might spend the night here. Will you spend the night with me, Obi-Wan?"

Although the Jedi Order prohibited sexual congress between its members, in this, as in many things, Qui-Gon liked to flout the rules, and it was one of the few rules which Obi-Wan broke along with him without regret. They had to keep their relationship secret, however, and could not indulge in each other's company as often as they would have preferred: This most recent succession of missions had kept them apart—even when they were working "together"—for over half a standard year.

"It would be my pleasure," Obi-Wan replied. He did not attempt to disguise his eagerness.

No further words were necessary between them. They kissed, embraced, and fell hungrily into each other. As the dome of the heavens wheeled overhead, Obi-Wan Kenobi opened and took Qui-Gon Jinn into himself. Then they were joined, in body and in mind, moaning, perspiring, moving in synchronicity, a perfect union, seeking completion, until ecstasy had utterly consumed them and they lay quiescent, feeling their hearts beat in unison, listening to the peaceful rumbling of the bantha all around them.

They didn't know it then, of course, but this was to be the last time before the end.

* * *

"Hello, Nara, you're looking well today."

Nearly twenty years had passed since a Jedi Master and his apprentice had taken a nighttime bantha ride through the desert of Tatooine, and much had changed. The Sand People were but a fraction of their former numbers, victim to some great catastrophe, it was said, and many of the bantha who'd once lived alongside them now roamed the Dune Sea…including the pair Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan had ridden. The desert hermit who called himself Ben Kenobi didn't actually know if they remembered him. He liked to think they did. It made him feel less alone.

"What's the matter, Dolo? Why so sad?" Ben asked the bantha he'd named Dolo. "Do you miss Master Qui-Gon too?"

Dolo snuffled and stomped the ground with his forelegs. That looked like an affirmative.

"Mmm, it _has_ been awhile, hasn't it? Go see your sister. Nara's in a good mood; she'll lighten your spirits," Ben said. He patted Dolo's flank, ran his fingers through the bantha's coat of long, soft hair, and smiled. "Then maybe we'll go for a ride later this evening. You know, just like old times. How would that be?"

Dolo's head swiveled in Nara's direction. It looked like he was considering taking Ben's advice.

"Besides, you never know," Ben added as Dolo made his decision and wandered over to stand beside his sister. "Maybe Master Qui-Gon will see fit to join us tonight."

END


End file.
